pretix
German open-source ticketing platform for conferences, festivals and exhibitions, hosted in Germany or run on your own server
Quick Overview
| Company | pretix GmbH |
|---|---|
| Category | Event Management Software |
| Headquarters | Heidelberg, Germany |
| Founded | Not stated |
| EU Presence | Yes - Germany (EU) |
| Data Location | Germany (servers in datacenters operated by German companies) |
| Open Source | AGPL v3 with additional terms (Community Edition) |
| GDPR Compliant | Yes |
| Self-Hosting | Yes - Community and Enterprise editions |
| Main Features | Customisable ticket shop, reserved seating plans, vouchers and marketing tools, waiting list, check-in app, point of sale app, reports, REST API, plugin marketplace, free choice of payment provider |
| Pricing | Hosted: 2.5% of the ticket price excl. taxes, never more than EUR 15 per ticket; free tickets EUR 0.50 each after the first 500 per year; no monthly fee |
| Best For | Conferences, festivals, museums and trade fairs that want full control of the ticket shop and their data |
| Replaces | Eventbrite, Ticket Tailor |
Detailed Review
pretix is built for organisers who want to sell tickets under their own brand rather than on a marketplace. The shop can be embedded in your website, payments go to the provider you choose, and ticket buyers are handled as your customers, with pretix acting as data processor.
The company states that all data is stored in Germany on servers in datacenters operated by German companies, and that it is certified to ISO/IEC 27001. The software is also published as open source, so an organisation can run it on its own infrastructure.
Ticket Shop, Seating and Check-in
The shop supports multiple ticket types, vouchers, a waiting list and interactive seating plans for venues of any size. pretixSCAN handles access control and live badge printing, and pretixPOS is a cash register app for box-office sales.
Add-ons are separate products: pretixLEAD for exhibitor lead scanning (EUR 25 per exhibitor) and Venueless for virtual and hybrid events.
Pricing Model
The hosted version charges per ticket sold, with no monthly fee and unlimited users. The fee is 2.5% of the ticket price excluding taxes, capped at EUR 15 per ticket, plus the fees of your payment provider such as PayPal, Stripe or Mollie.
Free tickets are charged at EUR 0.50 each, but the first 500 per year are free and the free quota grows with every paid ticket sold. Because the cap applies per ticket, expensive conference tickets cost proportionally less than on a flat-percentage platform.
Self-Hosting and Editions
pretix is open source under the GNU AGPL v3 with additional terms. The vendor distinguishes a Community Edition from Hosted and Enterprise, and marks which features are not part of the Community Edition.
Running it yourself means maintaining the server, updates and backups, which is the trade-off against the managed service.
Limitations to Consider
pretix is ticketing software for organisers, not a consumer event marketplace, so it does not bring its own audience the way Eventbrite does. The hosted service is sold only to businesses and similar entities, not to consumers. Some features are not in the Community Edition, and self-hosting requires technical skills. Marketplace-style discovery is better served by Billetto.
Who Should Use pretix
Organisers of conferences, festivals, museums and exhibitions who bring their own audience and want a German vendor, open-source code and the option to self-host.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Servers in Germany, ISO/IEC 27001 certified
- Fee capped at EUR 15 per ticket
- Open source with a self-hosting option
- Reserved seating, point of sale and check-in apps
- Free choice of payment provider
Cons
- No built-in audience or marketplace
- Hosted service is for businesses only
- Some features missing in the Community Edition
- Self-hosting needs server administration
Alternatives to pretix
Other European event management software worth comparing before you decide:
Ticket Tailor
United Kingdom · Flat per-ticket fee ticketing with servers in Ireland
Weezevent
France · Ticketing, access control and cashless in one platform
Billetto
Denmark · Ticketing with a consumer marketplace and pay-per-sale ads
Tito
Ireland · Embeddable conference ticketing with a 3% fee capped at EUR 25
See all European event management software or compare them directly against Eventbrite on our alternatives page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. pretix is published as open-source software and can be installed on your own server. The vendor also offers an Enterprise Edition and a managed hosted service, and notes that some features are only in Hosted and Enterprise.
The privacy page states that all data stored by pretix is located in Germany on servers in datacenters operated by German companies, and that the company is certified to ISO/IEC 27001.
The hosted service charges 2.5% of the ticket price excluding taxes, never more than EUR 15 per ticket, with no monthly fees. Free tickets cost EUR 0.50 each after the first 500 per year.